As candidates celebrated victory or mourned defeat in last night's elections, the University Board of Elections expressed satisfaction with voter turnout and the new system the Board initiated this year.
Forty-five percent of all undergraduate students cast an online ballot this week, including 50 percent of first through third years.
"We were very impressed with the undergraduate turnout," UBE Vice Chair Steve Yang said.
As in past years, low graduate school turnout lowered overall voting. Not counting the School of Continuing and Professional Studies, whose students are mostly adults studying off-Grounds, total voter turnout was 32.22 percent.
Two years ago, elections results showed 35.53 percent of students voted. Student Council reported a 27.49 percent turnout last year. Past election reports included some members of the School of Continuing and Professional Studies in turnout numbers.
According to UBE member Justin Bernick, the University experiences higher voter turnout than most colleges.
"People here are more politically active," Bernick said.
UBE members said they were satisfied with the elections process, from beginning to end.
"Given that the Board had about a month to put all these elections together, to approve rules, to set a calendar and take care of all the other elections-related tasks, that things ran this smoothly is a testament to the strength of the new system," Chair Brian Cook said.
Bernick said the turnout demonstrated student trust in the UBE system.
"If people feel like they can influence things politically, then they'll vote," Bernick said.
Cook said the UBE would release a report in the near future detailing the elections process and issuing recommendations for improving next year's process.
Members said the Board said they will recommend reducing candidate paperwork by switching to electronic submission, overseeing graduate school internal council elections after those schools expressed interest in UBE oversight, and considering allowing students to vote for write-in candidates.
The instant-runoff voting component of the UBE system was not a factor in the elections. Every candidate who won a plurality of votes in the first round went on the win his or her election. In every Student Council Executive Board election, one candidate won a majority of votes on the first round, so the computer system did not initiate the IRV process.
Yang said many students do not realize many elections now use the IRV.
"It's designed to elect the candidate with the most support," Yang said. "It will take some time for people to get used to."
Another UBE feature allowed students to add themselves to the ballot as late as the day before elections began, as long they had the requisite number of signatures. But early results indicated that no candidates who entered the race after the initial list was published won a race.
"Candidates entering late are at a disadvantage," Yang said.
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